Adjustable jacket for tire vulcanizers



Dec. 24, 1940. Q WARMAN 2,226,034

ADJUSTABLE JACKET FOR TIR E VULCANIZERS Filed April 15, 1939 m f 0. J: Warman I X379 ,6 6 61mm;

Patented Dec. 24, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE JACKET FOR TIRE VULCANIZERS Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in tire casing vulcanizers and pertains particularly to an improved form of jacket for the same.

The present invention has for its primary object to provide in a casing vulcanizer, a jacket which may be employed for securing to the vulcanizer core, casings of difierent sizes, the present jacket being designed particularly to fit tractor and truck tire casings of from 9 to 12 in. diameter.

A further and more specific object of the invention is to provide a vulcanizer jacket which is adjustable for use upon casings of different sizes and which is formed in two sections, each of which is constructed in a novel manner whereby the buckling of the side walls thereof is avoided when the jacket is closed about a casing of the smallest size for which it is designed.

Still another object is to provide a jacket for a casing vulcanizer, which is of simple construction, inexpensive to manufacture and which may be easily and quickly adjusted for use upon a casing of selected size.

The invention will be best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, with the understanding, however, that the invention is not to be confined toany strict conformity with the showing of the drawing but may be changed or modified so long as such changes or modifications mark no material departure from the salient features of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a view in side elevation of the base and inner arm or heating unit of a vulcanizer of the character with which the jacket embodying the present invention is used.

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the improved jacket.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 2, the inner arm being shown diagrammatically in cross-section.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2, showing the overlapping of the wall strips.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, the numeral I generally designates a supporting base for a vulcanizer of the type with which the present improved jacket is used, which base comprises a bottom plate 2 having secured thereto the vertically extending tubular standard 3 into the upper end of which is slidably extended the shiftable post or standard 4 which is held in vertically adjusted position by the locking screw 5.

The upper end of the post 4 is formed to provide the head 6 and mounted upon and secured to this head is the inside arm or heating unit 1 of the vulcanizer. This heating unit is of standard construction and forms no part of the present invention. Such units are ordinarily made in two sections which are bolted together and which house electric or steam heaters (not shown). Such units whenmadefor tractor tires would be of approximately 10 in. diameter and 22 in. long and would have a radius of a 50 in. circle. The jacket which is designed to encircle or enclose the inside arm or heater is of the same length as the arm and of sufiicient diameter when enclosing the portion of a tire casing in which the arm is disposed, to come within 2 or 3 in. of closing at the inner side of the casing. As previously stated, the inside arm or heating unit 1 is of usual construction, therefore, it is not considered necessary to illustrate or specifically describe its interior construction.

The improved jacket embodying the present invention is indicated generally by the numeral 8 and comprises the two arcuate tread plates 9 which are arranged in edge opposed relation as shown, and each of which carries twoor more radially extending ears H) which are located at the inner or adjacent edges of the plates so that the ears of one plate may be coupled with those of the adjacent plate by the connecting bolts ll. These bolts or screws ll constitute means for adjusting the diameter of the jacket.

One of the tread plates 9 has secured to its inner side adjacent the inner edge thereof, the sheet metal covering strip I2 which, when the tread plates are in operative relation, extends across the opening between the plates and is of sufiicient width to cover a substantial portion of the inner side of the adjacent tread plate so that the jacket may be adjusted to its largest diameter without the strip uncovering the opening between the tread plates.

At the inner side of the jacket in opposing relation with the tread plates, are arcuate bead plates l3. These bead plates are of substantially half the length of the tread plates and are arranged two on a side of the jacket, as shown, each bead plate being provided with the three longitudinally extending outwardly bowed corrugations l4. At the outer edge of each of the bead plates is a flange 15 which is formed to substantially conform to the cross-sectional contour of the casing while the inner edge is formed to provide a flange l6 which is substantially radially disposed with respect to the arcuate contour of the jacket. Each of the flanges H at its transverse center is provided with a bolt aperture I! and the bead plates on one side of the jacket have secured to the outer faces of the flanges Hi the nuts l8 which are alined with the adjacent bolt holes while upon the outer side of each of the opposite flanges Hi there is secured in alinement with the adjacent bolt hole a collar IS.

The outer edges of the tread plates 9 are connected with the outer flanges l5 of the adjacent bead plates by a series of longitudinally arcuate thin metal strips 20. The plates 9 and M are preferably formed of cast aluminum while the strips 20 are preferably of copper-aluminum or steel. The strips 20 are in edge overlapping relation as indicated at 2! and their ends are securely riveted or otherwise firmly attached to the tread and bead plates.

In the use of the present jacket, adjustment is made for the proper diameter by means of the bolts or screws H and when the jacket is put in position about a casing, it is drawn tight by the bolts 22 which extend through the collars I9 for threaded connection with the nuts l8 carried by the opposing flange it. Each of the bolts 22 has a shoulder portion 23 which bears against the adjacent collar l9 and facilitates drawing the bead plates together so that the beads of the enclosed casing will fit in the corrugations of the bead plates. For the larger size tires, it will be apparent that the beads will engage in the corrugations nearest the inner edges of the bead plates l4 whereas in the smaller tires the heads will engage in the corrugations nearer the outer edges of the plates or nearer the flanges I5. The corrugations of the bead plates also serve as a means to effect the drawing of the casings tightly about the inner arm as it will be readily seen that when the beads of the casing engage in the corrugations and the bolts 22 are tightened to draw the inner edges of the bead plates together, the connection between the casing beads and the bead plates will cause the casing to be pulled or drawn tightly around the arm.

By overlapping the strips 20 in the manner described, the buckling of these strips is prevented when the jacket is drawn into its smallest size as the plates will be permitted to have a slight degree of relative movement. By this means considerable flexibility is given the sides of the jacket which permits the jacket to be adjusted to different sizes of tiers without causing buckling or deformation of the jacket sides.

What is claimed is:

1. In a tire casing vulcanizer a jacket designed to enclose a heated inside arm of a vulcanizer machine, comprising two portions adapted to be coupled together in encircling relation with a casing, each of said jacket portions having a multi-sectional flexible wall, means coupling the sections of each portion together which is so constructed and arranged that the sections have relative movement by which the diameter of the jacket may be increased or decreased without distorting the wall of the jacket.

2. In a tire casing vulcanizer a jacket designed to enclose a casing supporting arm, comprising two separate and separable arcuate portions adapted to be disposed upon opposite sides of the casing, means for adjustably coupling said jacket portions together over the tread area of the casing, means for coupling together the opposite adjacent edge portions of the jacket, and said jacket portions each including longitudinally arcuate side wall strips of resilient metal ex tending across the side wall of the casing.

3. In a tire casing vulcanizer, a jacket comprising a pair of plates designed to be positioned against the tread of a casing, a pair of bead plates adapted to be disposed along the bead portion of the casing, means for adjustably coupling together said first-mentioned plates, means for coupling said bead plates and for drawing the same together, and a resilient metal wall connecting each of the first-mentioned plates with a bead plate, each of said walls being of materially less thickness than the plates which they join together.

4. In a tire casing vulcanizer, a jacket, comprising a pair of plates designed to be positioned against the tread of a casing, a pair of bead plates adapted to be disposed along the bead portion of the casing, means for adjustably coupling together said first-mentioned plates, means for coupling said bead plates and for drawing the same together, and a wall connecting each of said first-mentioned plates with a bead plate and consisting of a series of longitudinally arcuate strips joined at their ends to the plates and having their adjacent edges in overlapping relation.

5. In a tire casing vulcanizer, a jacket for enclosing a portion of a casing to be vulcanized, comprising a pair of longitudinally arcuate tread plates, a pair of longitudinally arcuate bead plates, each of said bead plates being formed to provide a series of longitudinally extending corrugations in which the bead of a casing may be selectively positioned, means for adjustably coupling together adjacent edges of the tread plates, a connecting wall between each tread plate and a bead plate and consisting of a series of thin strips of resilient metal secured at their ends to the tread and bead plates and having their adjacent edges in overlapping relation, said head plates having adjacent edges provided with radially extending ears, and means coupling said head plate ears whereby the bead plates may be drawn together to effect the tightening of the jacket around a casing.

ORA J. WARMAN. 

